Church Of St Andrew

Church of St Andrew, Denton

A parish church of exceptional architectural interest, with construction spanning from around 1200 through to the 16th century. The building was substantially restored in 1887–88 by Sir Arthur Blomfield, with the tower restored again in 1904 by architect Mr Weir.

The church is constructed of squared ironstone rubble with limestone ashlar dressings, with lead roofs throughout behind battlemented parapets. The plan comprises a western tower, nave with clerestory, north and south aisles, a north chapel, south porch, and chancel.

The dominant feature is the tall 15th-century five-stage tower with stepped corner buttresses terminating in octagonal pinnacles. It has a bell-moulded plinth and four chamfered string courses. The parapet is decorated with a quatrefoil frieze, coved cornice with rosettes and animal heads, and a grotesque spout on the south side. The belfry stage on all four sides has a pair of two-light louvred openings with trefoil heads and quatrefoils above, whilst the stage below contains a pair of blank openings with cinquefoil heads, their centres pierced by quatrefoils. A stair turret stands in the south-west angle, with a 19th-century pointed doorway at its base and two narrow stair lights above. The second stage of the tower contains a trefoil-headed crocketed and pinnacled niche with star vault; the third stage has a rectangular light. The west face has a double concave moulded and pointed door with hood, flanked by single matching niches. Above this sits a four-light west window with concave moulded surround, four-centred arched head, and recut tracery with brattished transom and ogee heads to the lights with flowing traceried panels. A rectangular light sits above, with a further niche and rectangular light on the north side.

The north aisle, one bay east of the tower, exposes a 14th-century two-light clerestory window in the nave wall; the remaining four clerestory windows are concealed behind the south aisle parapet. The north aisle features five stepped buttresses with chamfered and roll-moulded plinth. Its 15th-century west window has three lights with four-centred heads in a chamfered surround with hood mould. At high level, projecting cut stone possibly relates to an earlier arcade. The pointed early 13th-century north doorway has chamfered and concave moulded surround with hood and human head label stops. To the east are a pair of late 13th-century three-light windows with intersecting tracery and hood moulds with human head stops. The north chapel contains a 16th-century three-light window with deeply cut concave surround, four-centred arched head, and cusped heads to the lights. The east end has a large 16th-century three-light window with double concave and roll-moulded surround and flat head.

The chancel's 15th-century four-light east window features ogee and panel tracery with brattished half transom in a moulded surround with steep four-centred arched head. The south side has three 15th-century three-light windows with ogee heads and panel tracery. The nave clerestory contains five 14th-century windows matching those on the north side. The 15th-century south aisle has stepped buttresses with cusped gablettes and bell-moulded plinth. Its west and east windows are three-light designs with four-centred arched surrounds, ogee heads to the lights, and panel tracery. The south side contains three three-light windows with ogee heads, set in moulded surrounds with hood moulds and human head stops.

The south porch, dated 1901, has a battlemented parapet, pointed outer doorway with angle shafts, three-light side windows, and benches. The 14th-century pointed inner doorway has double concave moulded pointed head with concave moulded responds and imposts; the hood mould terminates in lion mask stops.

Interior

The interior contains a 15th-century four-bay north arcade and five-bay south arcade with octagonal piers and responds, brattished capitals, double-chamfered arches with hood moulds and human head stops. The bases are bell-moulded and decorated; however, two north arcade bases retain their 12th-century form. The tall tower arch has matching octagonal responds and imposts with double-chamfered arch. The chancel arch is similar, with hood mould terminating in lion mask stops. Beside the chancel arch on the north side is the opening for the rood loft. The south aisle contains an ogee-headed piscina. The 15th-century nave roof features cambered and moulded tie beams supported on human head and lion mask corbels. The north chancel has a two-bay arcade matching those of the nave. In the sanctuary sits a 14th-century piscina and a three-seat sedilia with ogee heads and foliate terminals. The piscina basin is supported on a short octagonal pier and decorated with a central rosette and radiating channels. The north aisle and chapel roofs have moulded principals with bosses and angel figures. Original stained glass fragments survive in the chancel south window; the adjoining window is by Kempe, dated 1901.

Fittings and Monuments

The oak screen has an ogee-headed central opening with a pair of two-light panels to each side surmounted by coved and brattished top. The altar rails are 17th-century turned balusters with moulded rail and square newels. The elaborate organ case is dated 1887 by Bentley. The 15th-century octagonal font has rosettes and lion masks in quatrefoil panels, set on an octagonal pillar decorated with rosettes. All other fittings are 19th-century except the reredos of 1911.

The chancel contains a 14th-century figure of a priest, partly sunk into a slab, with ogee-headed surround. Two worn 15th-century ledger slabs occupy the north chapel. The south aisle holds a wall monument to Johannes Blyth, died 1602, in ashlar. The Latin raised-letter inscription sits in an egg-and-dart surround flanked by Ionic pilasters and free-standing Composite fluted columns supporting a pediment containing a pair of naked female figures holding hour glasses and leaning on a skull. The frieze is decorated with medallions. The reclining figure of the deceased, prayer book in hand, lies on a half-rolled mattress atop a tomb chest on which are portrayed his wife and six children, all named in raised letters. The chest bears a full coat of arms at its end.

The north aisle contains a marble wall monument to Richard Welby, 1714, by Thomas Green of Camberwell. A fully wigged standing life-sized figure of the deceased stands in an arched surround flanked by fluted pilasters with acanthus scrolls and broken segmental pediment containing a cherub and putti leaning from heaven holding a metal coronet, surmounted by an achievement. Below is the inscription panel; to either side are putti holding memento mori symbols and mourning, one shedding tears.

Also in the north aisle are three 18th-century marble wall plaques to members of the Welby family, and a large white marble wall plaque containing a lengthy inscription recording the history of the Williams and Gregory families, created by Susannah Gregory who died in 1755 aged 84, executed by Thomas Taylor. The foot bears a skull, bats' wings, eternal serpent, and hour glass.